Concentric target assembly having side storage compartments

ABSTRACT

A target capable of capturing and segregating projectiles comprising a series of generally concentric tubular members of different sizes describing target areas and arranged to receive projectiles. The tubular members are arranged so that projectiles entering the target face defined by the tubular members are deflected rearwardly and downwardly into separate storage compartments associated with the respective target areas described by the tubular members. The storage compartments are located along the side of the target.

United States Patent [191 Skillern [451 Feb. 5, 1974 1 CONCENTRIC TARGET ASSEMBLY HAVING SIDE STORAGE COMPARTMENTS [76] Inventor: John A. Skillern, 132 State St.,

Framingham, Mass. 01701 [22] Filed: Nov. 5, 1971 21 App]. No.: 196,134

521 US. Cl. 273/105 A, 273/103, 273/95 D 51 1m. (:1 F4lj 1/04 58 Field of Search. 273/95 D, 103, 105 A, 102 R,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,442,054 1/1923 Dixon 273/105 A 3,484,109 12/1969 Dahlberg 273/105 A 1,771,466 7/1930 Scanlon 273/103 2,155,929 4/1939 Breitenstein 273/95 D 1,531,880 3/1925 Ritter 273/95 D 1,965,838 7/1934 Hofflund 273/105 A FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 464,765 5/1950 Canada 273/105 A Primary ExaminerRichard C. Pinkham Assistant Examiner-Marvin Siskind Attorney, Agent, or FirmW01f, Greenfield & Sacks ABSTRACT A target capable of capturing and segregating projec tiles comprising a series of generally concentric tubu lar members of different sizes describing target areas and arranged to receive projectiles. The tubular members are arranged so that projectiles entering the target face defined by the tubular members are deflected rearwardly and downwardly into separate storage compartments associated with the respective target areas described by the tubular members. The storage compartments are located along the side of the target.

13 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures PAIENIEDFEB 51914 SHEEI 1 (if 3 CONCENTRIC TARGET ASSEMBLY HAVING SIDE STORAGE COMPARTMENTS FIELD OF THE INVENTION BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION There presently exists in the art target devices that receive and capture projectiles, such as bullets, within a contained area. The traditional type of bulletcapturing target generally only serves to safely capture and arrest the bullet after it has passed through a paper target mounted on the face of the capturing aperture. Those types of bullet capturing targets are generally unsuited for easily deformable, low velocity projectiles. First, the paper target may not be penetrated by a light weight, low velocity projectile, and the paper target is generally not practical when using larger types of projectiles such as bean bags. Further, if the paper target is removed the single target aperture does not provide an indication of the accuracy of the impinging projectile.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, one important object of the present invention is to provide an improved target apparatus for capturing projectiles and segregating them according to their relative accuracy with respect to the target face.

A more spceific object of the present invention is to provide an improved target apparatus including a series of tubular members of different sizes and generally of concentric arrangement the leading edges of which describe target areas, and separate storage means associated with the respective tubular members to accumulate the projectiles which have been segregated with respect to the areas.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a target apparatus that is both simple to use and relatively inexpensive to produce.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved target apparatus that may be constructed of relatively few parts and may be quickly as sembled for use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention the target apparatus is adapted to capture and segregate projectiles directed at it and includes a plurality of generally concentric tubular members of different sizes arranged to form a bulls-eye type target having an entrance face for the projectiles. The target apparatus also includes storage means comprised of separate storage compartments associated with the separate tubular members for collecting projectiles entering the face. In its preferred form the tubular members are inclined so as to direct projectiles away from the entrance face and toward their separate storage compartments. The apparatus may also include a carrying handle and foot plate upon which a weight may be placed to increase target stability when relatively heavy or high speed projectiles are used.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Numerous other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon a reading of the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of target apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the target apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are cross sectional views of the target apparatus taken on section lines 33 and 4-4 of FIGS. 2 and 3, respectively;

FIG. 5 is a rear view of the target apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a front view of an alternate embodiment of target apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 7 and 8 are cross-sectional views of the target taken on section lines 7-7 and 8-8 of FIGS. 6 and 7, respectively; and

FIG. 9 is an exploded view in perspective of the four parts of the target apparatus suggesting how the several parts may be made.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to the drawings and in particular to the embodiment of FIGS. 1-5, the target apparatus includes in its general organization an outer shell or housing 10, three storage compartments l1, l2 and 13, and first and second concentric tubular members 14 and 15, respectively. The leading edges of the concentric tubular members along with the shell 10 describe a bulls-eye target area 16,, a second target area 17 immediately adjacent the bulls-eye, and a third, outer target area 18.

The shell 10 includes three generally semi-elliptical portions 21, 22 and 23, and portions 22 and 23 accommodate the inner ends of tubular members 14 and 15, respectively, as described in more detail below. The shell 10 also has a front facing wall 24. The substantially circular front edge 25 of shell portion 21 with the front edge 26 of tubular member 14 defines the outer target area I8, the edge 26 and front edge 27 of inner tubular member 15 define the second target area 17, and the edge 27 alone defines the bulls-eye area 16 on the target face. Projectiles aimed at the target face may enter any of the areas 16, 17 or 118.

The target face made up of the three target areas may be either vertical or inclined backwards somewhat, the inclined form increasing the liklihood that projectiles striking the front edge of one of the tubular members or shell squarely will fall'inside the target apparatus rather than in front of it. The leading edges 25, 26 and 27 of the shell and tubular members may also either be substantially coplanar or be progressively recessed from the edge 25 inwardly in order to further promote the capturing of projectiles. The later form is described in detail in connection with the embodiment of FIGS. 6-8.

In FIGS. 3 and 4 the concentrically arranged tubular members 14 and 15 are shown mounted in the shell 10. The tubular members 14, 15 and portion 21 of the shell slope downward to the right as viewed in FIG. 3, and their horizontal widths are reduced in a direction away from the target face as viewed in FIG. 4. The downward slope of members 14 and 15 and shell portion 21 facilitates the capturing of projectiles entering at approximately the top and bottom quadrants of the circular target areas 17 and 18 by virtue of the deflection angles of projectiles hitting their associated surfaces. The inward convergence of members 14 and 15 and shell portion 21 facilitates capturing of the projectiles entering approximately theside quadrants of the target areas 17 and 18 by virtue of the angles of deflection which they generate. When using larger projectiles such as bean bags and elastic bands some degree of capturing is accomplished without either downward slope or inward convergence simply by the damping effect of the interior proximity of the tubular members 14, 15 and the shell 21.

The tubular members 14 and 15 are of different length and extend different distances into the shell from the face of the target.

,In FIGS. 3 and 4 the inner tubular member is shown to extend rearwardly into the shell portion 23, and its rearwall 28 rests against rear wall 29 of the shell. Tubular member 14 in turn extends into the shell portion 22 and its rear wall 30, which has a central opening to accommodate the rear portion of inner member 15, rests against the rear wall 31 of the shell.

In FIG. 3 the storage compartments 11, 12 and 13 are shown disposed at the bottom of the shell 10, and tubular members 14 and 15 have holes 33 and 34 adjacent their rear walls along their lower-sides through which projectiles pass into these storage compartments. Thus, projectiles entering the bulls-eye area 16 are collected in the backmost compartment 13 and those entering second surrounding area 17 are collected in compartment 12. The shell portion 21 also has an opening 32 at its lower end to allow projectiles entering the outer target area 18 passage into storage compartment 11.

The shell 10 as viewed in FIG. 5 has a curved wall associated with each of its storage compartments. The walls identified by reference characters 35, 36 and 37 are associated respectively with compartments 11, 12, 13. These walls cause projectiles to slide to the left as viewed in FIG. 5 as they pass through openings 32, 33, 34 and accumulate closer to the retrieval-side of the several compartments. Wall 38 extends upwardly from the bottom of the shell a sufficient distance to retain the projectiles in the various storage compartments.

While in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-5 projectiles are removed from the compartments from the side, it is within the scope of this invention that the compartments be located at the front or rear of the target apparatus, and different access be provided to retrieve projectiles from them. It is also expected that fewer or more than three concentric target areas and compartments may be provided. Removal of projectiles through the face of the target is also possible although less preferable. This allows for the elimination of the storage compartments but makes projectile retrieval more difficult.

The apparatus may be constructed in four separate pieces, each molded independently and then interconnected by suitable fasteners, etc. This form of construction is shown in FIG. 9. In that form the complete outer shell 10 including the collection storage compartments ll, 12 and 13 consists of two separate pieces 10a and 10b by essentially dividing the shell along a vertical plane extending front to back through the target face (see FIG. 2). The members 14 and 15, of course, comprise the other two parts of the assembly. The shell 10 as depicted in FIGS. 1 and 3 may include a carrying handle 39 and a foot plate 40 extending forward from front facing wall 24. The bottom surface (not shown) of shell 10 may have a non-skid layer or non-skid members affixed thereto to minimize target movement when a projectile strikes it.

The major components of the target may be made from a variety of different types of materials, but preferably they are made from a moldable plastic material such as Cycolac plastic which has sufficient properties of strength and slipperiness to assure that projectiles travel through the target face and tubular members to the storage comparments and do not hang up at some point within the target. Moreover, the parts may be made in different colors to enhance the clarity of individual target areas.

As previously mentioned the intermediate member 14 and the center member 15 fit into the outer shell portions 22 and 23, respectively. Referring to FIGS. 3 and 9, to secure members 14 and 15 in place, each is provided in the embodiment shown with horizontally extending flanges 50 and 51 on each side coextensive with the portions of each which fit into the shell portions 22 and 23, and slots 52 and 53 are provided in the shell portions to receive the flanges.

The four parts of the target may be interconnected by a transverse connecting rod 54, with additional fasteners being employed as required. Because the rod 54 is located well back of the target face it does not present an obstacle to projectiles entering the target, and deformable projectiles such as rubber bands, bean bags etc. striking the rod will tend to fall into the target storage compartments rather than bouncing out of the shell.

Easily deformable projectiles such as elastic bands, bean bags, etc. are particularly well suited for use with this type of target because they readily slip around the edges of the shell and tubular members (rather than rebounding from them) and enter the target body. A further improvement of the previously mentioned multicolor concept is to use the same color on the external surfaces of the central and intermediate tubular members as on the internal surfaces of the surrounding members. This results in distinct different colors being associated with each target area. A further alternative is to color only the front edges of the tubular members 26, 27 and the shell 25.

In use, it is apparent that projectiles reaching the face of the target are captured by either of the annular openings 17 or 18 or the bulls-eye area 16 and slide downwardly and rearwardly and ultimately fall or are deflected into one of the three compartments ll, 12, 13 where they may later be retrieved. Gradients of accuracy are determined by the particular collection compartmens in which the projectiles are found. When relatively heavy projectiles are used, it may be desirable to place a weight on the forwardly extending plate 40 to retard movement of the target. Projectiles of different color typically may be used to allow differentiation between those of the various participants.

The embodiment of FIGS. 6-8 differs from that of FIGS. 1-5 in two principal features. One distinction is in the configuration of the mouth of each of the tubular members and the shell which comprise the target, and the second distinction is in the relative positions of the leading edges of the tubes. Thus, in FIGS. 7 and 8, the portion 70 of shell 71 and outer ends 72 and 73 of tubular members 74 and 75 respectively are shown to be straight through in shape rather than flared as in the embodiment of FIGS. l.5. Further, the front edges 76 of the shell, 77 of the outer tubular member 74, and 78 of inner tubular member 75 are successively stepped rearwardly so as to effectively to define a cone-shaped face rather than a planar face for the target.

In order to insure that projectiles entering the side quadrants of the outermost target area 79 and the intermediate target area bill are captured within thetarget body and do not bounce out after striking the rear walls, the rear walls are canted. Thus, in FIG. 8 the rear wall sections 81 of area 79 are oblique on each side so that projectiles entering the side quadrants of the target area 79 will bounce off the wall 8i and hit the outer surface of the outer tubular member 74 and be retained within the target body. Similarly, the rear wall sections 82 of the outer tubular member are slanted so that projectiles entering the side quadrants of the target area 80 will be deflected against the outer surface of the inner tubular member 75 and be retained in the body. it will be recognized that no comparable arrangement is re quired for the top and bottom quadrant of each of the two annular target areas, because of the inclination of the axis of the several target areas. Thus, the deenergized projectiles fall into the appropriate collection compartments as in the embodiment of FIG. 1.

The stepped configuration of the target face also facilitates capturing of the projectiles. However, in order to maintain apparent concentricity of the target areas in a projected vertical plane at the face, the axis of the inner tubular member 75 is parallel to but raised somewhat with respect to the axis of the tubular member 74. Viewed in a horizontal plane, (FIG. 8) the target areas are concentric. The lip 76 on the shell 7l allows the axis of the outer member 7% to be coincident with the shell portion 70 while preserving concentricity of those portions of the target in a vertical plane.

With the stepped configuration of the leading edges 76 to 78, a projectile striking one edge squarely will tend to be captured by the next outer target area rather than falling directly downward and hence completely outside the target. Throughout this application the various members have been described as being tubular or tube-like. These terms are intended to include hollow members of any of the various shapes which might be appropriate to a target of this type. That is, there is no intent to limit the various members to being cylindrical in shape.

Having described this invention in detail, those skilled in the art will appreciate that modifications may be made of the embodiments shown and described 6 without department from the spirit of this invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A target structure comprising a plurality of hollow capturing members of different sizes and open at the front ends disposed one inside the other so that said front ends form a plurality of substantially concentric and substantially vertical target areas for projectiles,

and compartments for said projectiles disposed from front to rear of said target, said compartments being accessible through other than the target face for retrieving the projectiles, means placing the compartments and members in communication with one another and with each successivelysmaller member extending rearwardly away from the target face to a successively more rearwardly located compartment which acts to collect the projectiles entering that respective target area. 2. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by at least some of said members being additionally downwardly declining from their front ends for causing projectiles which impinge upon either the inside or outside of said members to be deflected against the interior of the target structure and thence captured in said target structure. 3. A target structure as described in claim ll further characterized by at least some of said members having side walls which flare outwardly toward their front ends for causing projectiles which impinge upon said side walls to be deflected inwardly and thence captured in said target structure. 4. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by at least some of said members having deflecting plates at the sides of their rear portions for causing projectiles which impinge upon said plates to be deflected against the interior of the target structure and be captured in the target structure. 5. A target structure as described in claim ll further characterized by the front ends of the members being substantially coplanar. 6. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by the front ends of the members being stepped rearwardly from the largest to the smallest of the membets. 7. A target structure as defined in claim 1 further characterized by each of said members being at least partially of different color on its inside surfaces from the next adjacent members and with the members each colored on at least part of their outside surfaces with the same color as the next successively larger member is colored on its inside surface thus resulting in different colors being associated with adjacent target areas. 8. A target structure as described in claim l further characterized by at least one of said compartments being accessible through the side of the target structure for removing collected projectiles. 9. A target structure as described in claim ll further characterized by each of said compartments being accessible through the side of the target structure for removing collected projectiles. 10. A target structure comprising a shell having an opening at the front defined by its front edge, at least one tubular member mounted within the shell and having its front edge disposed within the opening and extending rearwardly in the shell from said opening,

said shell having a rear portion of reduced size which mates with the rear portion of the tubular member to fix its position and support the member within the shell,

the front edges of the shell and member defining an outer annular target area in addition to the center target area created by the front edge of the memher,

and compartments for collecting projectiles fired into the target areas, said compartments being disposed from front to rear of said shell and one compartment in communication with each target area.

11. A target structure as described in claim 10 further characterized by at least one additional tubular member within the first recited member and having a front edge within the opening and another rear portion of reduced size in the shell which mates with the rear portion of said additional tubular member to fix its position and to support it within the shell, the front edges of said tubular members defining yet another annular target area.

12. A target structure comprising a plurality of hollow capturing members of different sizes and open at the front ends disposed one inside the other so that said front ends form a plurality of target areas for projectiles which appear to be substantially concentric when viewed horizontally from the front of the target,

and compartments for said projectiles disposed from front to rear of said target, said compartments being accessible through other than the target face for retrieving the projectiles,

means placing the compartments and members in communication with one another and with each successively smaller member extending rearwardly away from the target face to a successively more rearwardly located compartment which acts to collect the projectiles entering that respective target area.

13. A target structure comprising a plurality of hollow capturing members of different sizes and open at the front ends disposed one inside the other so that said front ends form a plurality of target areas for projectiles which appear to be substantially concentric when viewed horizontally from the front of the target,

each successively smaller capturing member extending through the rear end of the next consecutively larger capturing member,

compartments for said projectiles disposed generally below said capturing members, said compartments being accessible through other than the front of the target for retrieving the projectiles,

and openings provided in the bottom portion of each capturing member, communicating with its respective compartment, the openings in each successively smaller capturing member disposed rearwardly of the rear end of the next larger capturing member. 

1. A target structure comprising a plurality of hollow capturing members of different sizes and open at the front ends disposed one inside the other so that said front ends form a plurality of substantially concentric and substantially vertical target areas for projectiles, and compartments for said projectiles disposed from front to rear of said target, said compartments being accessible through other than the target face for retrieving the projectiles, means placing the compartments and members in communication with one another and with each successively smaller member extending rearwardly away from the target face to a successively more rearwardly located compartment which acts to collect the projectiles entering that respective target area.
 2. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by at least some of said members being additionally downwardly declining from their front ends for causing projectiles which impinge upon either the inside or outside of said members to be deflected against the interior of the target structure and thence captured in said target structure.
 3. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by at least some of said members having side walls which flare outwardly toward their front ends for causing projectiles which impinge upon said side walls to be deflected inwardly and thence captured in said target structure.
 4. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by at least some of said members having deflecting plates at the sides of their rear portions for causing projectiles which impinge upon said plates to be deflected against the interior of the target structure and be captured in the target structure.
 5. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by the front ends of the members being substantially coplanar.
 6. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by the front ends of the members being stepped rearwardly from the largest to the smallest of the members.
 7. A target structure as defined in claim 1 further characterized by each of said members being at least partially of different color on its inside surfaces from the next adjacent members and with the members each colored on at least part of their outside surfaces with the same color as the next successively larger member is colored on its inside surface thus resulting in different colors being associatEd with adjacent target areas.
 8. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by at least one of said compartments being accessible through the side of the target structure for removing collected projectiles.
 9. A target structure as described in claim 1 further characterized by each of said compartments being accessible through the side of the target structure for removing collected projectiles.
 10. A target structure comprising a shell having an opening at the front defined by its front edge, at least one tubular member mounted within the shell and having its front edge disposed within the opening and extending rearwardly in the shell from said opening, said shell having a rear portion of reduced size which mates with the rear portion of the tubular member to fix its position and support the member within the shell, the front edges of the shell and member defining an outer annular target area in addition to the center target area created by the front edge of the member, and compartments for collecting projectiles fired into the target areas, said compartments being disposed from front to rear of said shell and one compartment in communication with each target area.
 11. A target structure as described in claim 10 further characterized by at least one additional tubular member within the first recited member and having a front edge within the opening and another rear portion of reduced size in the shell which mates with the rear portion of said additional tubular member to fix its position and to support it within the shell, the front edges of said tubular members defining yet another annular target area.
 12. A target structure comprising a plurality of hollow capturing members of different sizes and open at the front ends disposed one inside the other so that said front ends form a plurality of target areas for projectiles which appear to be substantially concentric when viewed horizontally from the front of the target, and compartments for said projectiles disposed from front to rear of said target, said compartments being accessible through other than the target face for retrieving the projectiles, means placing the compartments and members in communication with one another and with each successively smaller member extending rearwardly away from the target face to a successively more rearwardly located compartment which acts to collect the projectiles entering that respective target area.
 13. A target structure comprising a plurality of hollow capturing members of different sizes and open at the front ends disposed one inside the other so that said front ends form a plurality of target areas for projectiles which appear to be substantially concentric when viewed horizontally from the front of the target, each successively smaller capturing member extending through the rear end of the next consecutively larger capturing member, compartments for said projectiles disposed generally below said capturing members, said compartments being accessible through other than the front of the target for retrieving the projectiles, and openings provided in the bottom portion of each capturing member, communicating with its respective compartment, the openings in each successively smaller capturing member disposed rearwardly of the rear end of the next larger capturing member. 